The present application relates to call center management operations and more specifically to processing call center operations including the virtual queuing of calls.
Call centers receive calls from numerous customers. The high volume of calls often necessitates the use of call queues in which the customers must wait until an agent of the call center is available to assist the caller. However, in call systems utilizing virtual queuing, a customer may opt to receive a call back from an agent of the call center instead of waiting on the phone. If so, the call remains in the queue of the call center, but the customer may disconnect from the call. When the customer's call reaches the head of the queue, the call center calls the customer back and connects the customer to an agent. As such, in typical virtual queuing systems, each call is queued either normally (i.e., the customer waits on the line) or virtually (i.e., the customer is called back). Such functionality occurs completely within the call center and may require additional devices, components, software, and structure to provide the virtual queuing functionality.
There have been numerous solutions for solving the on-hold problems associated with call centers, but those solutions each have various shortcomings relating to interfacing and/or the integration with call center technology.
One call back technique is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,627,884, wherein the user enters a call back number and the call center then calls the user back after the standard on-hold wait time. In this technique, the user disconnects, but the call itself remains in the same customer queue as on-hold customers. Therefore, the technique provides that on-hold and call back customers both wait the same time. Moreover, this technique is directly integrated into the call back center, thus for the implementation of this technique, the call center itself must upgrade and install such technology. Call centers include many complex software techniques for managing efficiencies between agents and callers, the inclusion of additional hardware and technology into the call center itself not only further complicates the call center technology, but includes installation and maintenance overhead related thereto.
Another existing call back technique is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,704,404 relating to a call center. In this technique, the caller can request a designated call back time or have the call request simply queued for the next available agent. This technique does not apply any processing or logic to the queuing of the call back, but merely filters the queued call back request consistent with a normal on-hold user. Additionally this technique is extremely inefficient for call centers because the call center is first engaged prior to calling the user. Therefore, precious call center time is wasted waiting for the user to answer the call back request, including the waste of time if the user does not answer the call.
Customer service interactions and call center activities are major cost factors for companies. These call centers are both essential to managing customers, but also relate directly to customer relations and satisfaction. Call centers themselves seek operation as maximum efficiency for not only solving the concerns of the customer, but also for managing staffing of service agents. A company seeks to find an economic medium between the staffing of call centers and managing customer expectations for service operations.
Therefore, there exists a need for call back processing technology that overcomes the problems of the existing systems. There exists a need for call back methods and systems that operates virtual to the call center itself, that properly optimize the usage of the time and availability of the call center agent, and that properly meter the queuing of call back request to manage the estimated wait time of on-hold customers and call back customers.